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iOS 6: Everything You Need to Know

If you were looking for new mobile features, then iOS 6, which Apple unveiled on Monday at WWDC, does not disappoint.

At WWDC 2012, Scott Forstall took the stage to unveil iOS 6 to developers. iOS 6 features more than 200 updates and improvements when compared to iOS 5. iOS 5 already boasts more than 80% adoption rate across devices and Apple boasted figures about iMessage, Twitter stats, Game Center and push notifications.

Siri

Siri is smart about sports. It can pull in scores, game summaries and player stats.

Siri integrates with Yelp and OpenTable for restaurant reviews and reservations

Siri in iOS 6 will also integrate with Rotten Tomatoes for movie times and reviews.

Siri is also available in a slew of new languages.

Siri will get hands-free integration in lots of in-car systems.

Siri is coming to the new iPad.

Facebook Integration

This is a big one. Just as Twitter received a big boost with its deep integration with iOS 5, Facebook will get the same treatment in iOS 6.

Users can login to their Facebook account in iOS 6 and have instant access to Facebook in apps, the web browser and Siri. Developers can also easily add access within their apps.

Facebook contacts will get integrated in iOS 6, but for us, the bigger news is that events and birthdays can also sync with the calendar.

New Phone App Enhancements

In the phone app, Apple has added a new mode that will make it easy for users to remind themselves to call or text-back later, if they can't take a call right now.

There is also a "Do Not Disturb" mode. Messages will still come to your phone, but the screen won't light up or make any noise. There are also new ways to group contacts and control how their calls are handled.

FaceTime Over Cellular

Look out Skype, FaceTime will now work over cellular connections. Even better, if someone calls your phone, you can choose to answer on your iPad or Mac.

Safari

Safari is getting offline reading lists, making the feature more Instapaper-like. These lists will also sync with the Reading List in Safari for OS X.

Another new feature is the ability to add "App Banners" to a website. This allows developers to easily show-off their native app. Users can touch the banner to get the app — and if, the app is installed, they can go directly to the app and open it up in the right place.

Photos

Users can now share groups of photos to their friends over iCloud. Think of this as a cross between Glassboard and Path, but just for your photos.

Users can comment on photos too.

Mail

There is a new VIP feature that will highlight mail from people you really want to hear from. I get way too much email, so I love this feature.

Apple is also adding the ability to open password-locked documents in mail and pull-to-refresh for messages.

Passbook

Think of this as an app that replicates the loyalty card tracker from Google Wallet. It collects all of your loyalty cards, ticket information and other info into one neat place for easy access. Even better, it's location-enabled so it knows what to show based on where you are (so you can get your movie tickets at the theater or your plane ticket at the airport).

Passbook looks great.

Maps

Another big one. Apple is making good on some of its mapping acquisitions and launching its own mapping app.

The new Apple Maps integrates with Yelp. Apple is also building its own traffic service that can offer anonymous, crowd-sourced and real-time incident reports.

Moreover, Apple is bringing turn-by-turn navigation to the iPhone. It's vector-based and voiced by Siri. Say goodbye to your TomTom and just use your iPhone!

From the on-stage demo, it looks like the level of detail on the maps and places is intense — and the rendering happens super-fast.

iOS 6's Maps app will also highlight developer mapping apps inside the app, pointing out the best transit apps in the app store.

When Can I Get It?

Developers will have access to the first beta on iOS 6 later this afternoon. Customers can expect to see iOS 6 on their devices in the fall.

It will support the iPhone 3GS and later, the second and third generation iPads and the fourth generation iPod touch.

All-in-all, this looks like a fantastic release!

Bonus: WWDC 2012 Keynote in Pictures

Live from WWDC 2012 Keynote

Welcome to WWDC

The Worldwide Developers Conference kicked off Monday, June 11.

Keynote Sign

A sign for the keynote, given by Apple CEO Tim Cook, on Monday morning.

WWDC Signs

Signs promoting Apple products hung around the convention center.

Tim Cook

Apple CEO Tim Cook starts off the keynote.

WWDC

This is the 23rd year of the Worldwide Developer Conference.

App Stats

a]Cook said that 400 million have credit cards synced with their iTunes accounts.

iPad Apps

225,000 Apps have been developed just for iPad.

Apps Taking Over

Cook also said 30 billion apps have been sold overall.

WWDC Announcments

Macbooks and Mac Airs, Mountain Lion and iOS will be discussed during the keynote.

New Macbook Airs

Phil Schiller announced improvements to the Macbook Air.

Ivy Bridge

The Macbook Air would have Intel's new Ivy Bridge processors.

Phil Schiller

Schiller, SVP of Global Marketing, was in charge of the Macbook announcements.

More Storage

The Macbook Air updates will have up to 512 GB of flash memory storage, as much space as many larger laptops.

FaceTime

The Airs will have a 720p FaceTime camera.

11-inch Air

Stats for the new Air compared to its predecessor.

13-inch Air

The new 13-inch Macbook Air compared to its previous version.

Macbook Update

The original Macbook Pros are getting an update too, with new graphics cards and Ivy Bridge processors.

New Mystery Computer

Schiller hinted a new mystery computer that was Apple's "greatest laptop ever".

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Movies on Passbook

The app also features GPS-enabled notifications for when you are a near a movie theater.

Real-time Travel Updates

Flight delays and gate changes are sent right to your mobile device.

Lock Screen Notifications

Playbook also notifies you of changes via the lock screen so you don't have to unlock your device.

Guided Access

Guided access give parents and teacher control of how an iOS device can be used, from locking the home motion to. For example, the home button and all other hardware buttons can be locked and touch sensitivity restricted to certain parts of the screen.

Single-app Mode

This feature within Guided Access lets teachers focus their students's attention on the task at hand.

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New Maps

Apple had rebuilt their Maps app from the ground up.

Goodbye Google

Apple has ditched the search giant, even redrawing their own maps.

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Incident reports

Real-time traffic updates give incident reports to users.

Crowd-sourced Traffic Info

The new Maps app takes in traffic info from other iOS users.

Turn-by-turn directions

Long a feature on Android devices, turn-by-turn directions finally comes to iOS.

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Maps, now with Siri

Use Siri to find nearby gas stations while you're on the road.

Are we there yet?

Now if only Siri could drive while you relaxed in the passenger's seat.

Flyover

The Flyover feature gives you a 3D viewpoint of the terrain.

Sharp, real-time images

Images are rendered in real time and are exceptionally detailed.

A real crowd-pleaser

Flyover lets you adjust camera angles, toggle between 2D and 3D, and zoom in and out of the map. The crowd at #WWDC couldn't get enough.

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iOS 6 Beta Out Today

Developers will get their first look at these improvements today.

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Tim Cook Closes out the Keynote

"The products we make combined with the apps that you create, can fundamentally change the world," Cook said as he closed the event. "Really, I can't think of a better reason to get up in the morning."

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